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I wanted to do a good writeup and show an easier way of removing and replacing the rear subframe bushings. My buddy suggested this method as he used to be a GM mechanic and assured it could be done easily. My hope was to make this a sticky so more people feel comfortable doing this. I was really reluctant to do this until my buddy offered to assist. I do not regret this at all. It is well worth it.

I purchased the bushings as open box off ebay. I did this at the hobby shop at NAS Jacksonville, FL. I know most people dont have access to a lift but this could be done on jack stands as well. The only specialty tools required is an air hammer and torque wrench. I purchased my air hammer and bits at home depot. The hobby shop had air so I did not need to purchase a compressor. The torque wrench was supplied by the hobby shop as well. All other tools are basic hand tools that every mechanic should have.

First I removed the rear subframe in accordance with the subaru manual, this can be purchased on ebay for $9.95 as a download and it also includes the body repair manual. This took under an hour.

Then I started going at the bushings with the air hammer with a chisel tip. The key to this is to push in the top of the bushing and then wedge the chisel in between the bushing and subframe. You need to keep the angle right or youll just push through the bushing and get the chisel stuck. Once the chisel tip makes its way through it will catch the bottom lip of the bushing and push it out. I did have a little scoring of the subframe but the maximum depth was maybe 1/64 of an inch. If the chisel tip is too wide then you wont be able to push through, a narrower tip might work better, mine was 3/4 inch wide. Then i took a file to the burrs to smooth them out. Total time to remove bushings was about 30 minutes.

Once those are out, grease the new bushings, install, then reinstall subframe.

Total time out of my day was 5hrs. But I had to run to homedepot to get the air hammer and bits cause the hobby shop's wasnt working. Homedepot was our last stop after NAPA, Oreilly, Advance Autoparts, Autozone and Sears. Then we stopped for lunch. So total labor time was under 4hrs.

Please follow the subaru manual and torque everything properly. I take no responsibly in anyone screwing up their car.

there is definitely an improvement. the rear end is alot tighter and gives you more confidence in corners. nvh is increased especially at high rpm but it does not bother me. it is well worth it. i would do these bushings along with others before springs, sway bars, or coilovers. then you will be able to get a better feel for what you want/need.

instead of chiseling it out you could've bush press those out and press the new ones in. although the metal ring to the bushing always gets stuck and you have to hammer those out but after that its not that bad.

I couldnt fit the subframe in the press. The new ones didnt need pressed in, just grease and a mallet. I wanted to do more bushings but i dont know what suspension components i want yet. Ill do the diff bushings when i flush it.

though i burned out the center of the bushing first and used a sawzall to cut through the outer ring. then used an air hammer/chisel to finish them up. i wanted to avoid the huge gouges like you had. but i still ended up causing some marks.

one thing about pressing the bushings out. it cant be done without the right size press and the proper tools. like you mentioned, you had issues getting the subframe onto the press. i had access to a huge press and still had issues. plus you'd need like 2-3 people to hold the thing while you try to press it out.

on top of that, these are not just straight bushings. the edges on the bottom side curve over the ring they are pressed into, making it almost impossible to support the ring while you press the bushing out.

gsrcrxsi: i read your write up and wanted to avoid the cuts that were made with the sawzall thats why i tried this way. kind of ironic i still ended up with some. the deepest gouges i had are the ones in the video and like i said they were maybe 1/64th inch deep. my reaction in the video just made them sound deeper because i wanted to avoid them all together. i guess unless they are pressed out, which i would like to see done, there are going to be cuts/gouges.

also maybe if a narrower chisel tip is used on the air hammer it might not leave cuts/gouges.